Tea tortrix, Homona coffearia Nietner (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), is a seasonal pest of tea in Sri Lanka. Though it is active in dry weather, it is observed that populations do occur in wet weather causing serious damage to tea. The parasite, Macrocentrus homonae Nixon (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), controls the tortrix populations, but the efficiency of Macrocentrus has been reduced on account of hyperparasites in recent times. Level of hyperparasitism was studied in some tea tortrix prone areas in the up country region to study how this affected the tortrix populations during wet weather. The hyperparasitism varied during the study period of which average values observed ranged from 35% to 52% in the plantations studied. A negative linear relationship was observed between the average number of parasite cocoons in a cocoon mass and the percentage hyperparasitism. Three generations of tortrix were evident during the study period of May to November 2005. It is observed that tortrix populations do occur in dry and wet weather, and that hyperparasitism has been identified as the major cause affecting the efficient control of tortrix by the parasite. Possibilities of tea tortrix control in wet weather are discussed.

Amarasinghe, L.D., Vitarana, S.I. and Abeysekera, A.R. (2002) Current Status of the Parasitism and Hyperparasitism of Tea Tortrix (Homona coffearia, Nietner) and Their Influence on the Population Stability in Sri Lanka. Journal of Plantation Crops, 30, 64-65.

Walgama, R.S., Nandakuamara, S., De Seram, C., Randeniya, S. and Sannasooriya, R. (2009) A Simple and Cost Effective Way Out for Managing Tea Tortrix in Plantations: A Case Study. Proceedings of the 219th Experiment and Extension Forum, Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka, July 2009, 42-47.